Method:Depending on where we’ve landed that week, I’ll do my utmost to sample the local beers and select my favourite.

Principles: I am a simple man; one who loves beer in any shape or form. You won’t find tasting notes or references to aromas and distinct flavours here.

Discussion: Well that’s for you to do!

Conclusions and Recommendations:I consider myself a man of the beer world. My top three countries in order of beer quality are Belgium, Germany and Australia (with Ireland a close fourth). So listen up my friends!

Since we’re about to hit the road, I thought I’d start with a beer that I love so dearly. I know we’re not in Belgium, but I’ve been drinking this beer regularly in Melbourne.

Name: Trappistes Rochefort 10

Brewery: Abbaye St-Remy

Location: Rochefort, Belgium

Alcohol: 11.3%

Don’t think that I only judge beer by its alcohol content. It just so happens that this delightful drop will render you incoherent after a couple of bottles. Trappistes Rochefort 10 is classified as an “authentic trappist product," which means monks used to make it. If the road to enlightenment involves drinking this day after day, then I’m already halfway there.

Trappistes Rochefort also has two other versions (6 and 8), each with a lower alcohol content than 10. The creamy head draws you in, the dark colour tantalises your senses and while the smell is heavy and strong, the taste is truly impeccable. My great pleasure with this beer is admiring the “floaty bits” throughout the beer itself. We’ve all had bottle conditioned beer before and those yeasty particles are fantastic. It’s particularly enjoyable after dinner, where it can substitute for a coffee to keep the night going longer.

This beer will serve as a kind of basis when I express my judgement of all other beers on our travels. I love all the different styles of beer and comparison to Trappistes Rochefort 10 may sometimes prove difficult, however I’m sure I’ll manage. All I know is that if you haven’t tried it yet, then you must do so before the sun sets (or rises again) on the day you read this.